Urban agriculture, however limited, starts a process
to create new and unrealised potential for those with nothing …

One of the kits available for a household ina refugee camp

... it gives them
joy – a flower for its scent or delightful beauty, extra food – vegetables and
fruits, dignity for the gardeners, hope for their families and others, and a
sanctuary – a quiet personal space …

Ten gardens …

Ten plus
‘war gardeners’ …

Seeds
were sown …

Greening
started and was nourished …

Stories
flowed, ideas spread …

Insects
and birds came …

A
wondrous patch of land gave these hardworking gardeners some solace, where
roots could be put down – even in their time of displacement … for many years
ahead.

The video about the Liberation Garden ison the Lemon Tree site

Domiz is a camp for Syrian refugees in Iraqi Kurdistan
… which gives us an insight into the Trust’s work there … it is quite
extraordinary and so wonderful to see …

A panorama of Ruhleben camp taken in 1917 by Nico Jungmann, one of the detainees - who wasan Anglo-Dutch painter

…man can be
amazing, so generous, so adaptable, so accepting (in that there’s no choice) …
the Trust gives them opportunities to personalise their lives within the
patches of land available.

Please look at the videos on the Lemon Tree Trust’s
site to see the wonderful little havens of love they have created for their
families and community …

I’ll get to where this post came from and is going to
shortly! The Clipper race reminds me of Cornwall,
my mother and her sailing interests when the Tall Ships came into Penzance
harbour …

... but Ben reminds me of my Oxford days … though no degree for me – just
school, friends, and the fact my father, uncle and cousin all had degrees from
Worcester College …

Eastbourne seafront along the various promenades - thelovely turquoise tiled bandstand with the 'denuded' pierin the background (after the fire a few years ago)

Where was I?!
Memories, apart from today’s life here in Eastbourne … Ben has had some
incredible experiences … 18 months with the Antarctic Survey, running a
festival in the Spanish desert, working in a travelling circus as an aerialist …

... he has a PhD in Physics from Oxford, with interests in electronics,
environmental impact, and acrobatics … I guess most of those you’d need
skippering a Clipper round the world.

Now to why this post is being written … some friends
came round for supper and having seen this wine box in Waitrose bought me one …
memories of South Africa …

… I love the quote on the box:

Be Passionate

LOVE

DREAM BIG

Be Spontaneous

CELEBRATE

Change the World or Go Home

We only ever had a few pieces ofplain blue and white Cornishware ..Viota is a cake mix from the early20th century

The colours reminded me of my Ma and our Cornish days …
the blue and white of Cornwall’s china … the blue skies and crested waves of
Kernow: branded Cornishware … which I wrote about in my A-Z 2015.

I know, I know … here’s a right tangle of tentacles
creating a post … but inspiration struck … and then in trying to tie things
together … here’s another appropriate quote for this paragraph … found under
the Stormhoek name … “Catch the Moment” … I get distracted!

This huge box supplied by the 2017/18 sponsor,
Stormhoek, was on tap at the end of the Clipper Race in Liverpool last year
after they had completed a circumnavigation of the planet … what a way to serve
24,000 litres of its wine – that could be 144,000 glasses!

Some facts:

The race is held every two years … and in March the
eleven selected skippers were revealed … they have over a million miles of
experience between them …

… and must be outstanding instructors, exceptional
motivators, and strong role models … keep calm and patient under pressure, and
- understand all types of personalities …

… just like us bloggers?! or authors, or journalists …

The Race is one of the biggest challenges of the
natural world and an endurance test like no other, the race is taken by
ordinary, everyday people (about 700 of them) – with no previous sailing experience necessary, it’s
a 40,000 nautical mile race around the world on board 70-foot ocean racing
yachts.

There is nowhere to hide – anyone can take part …
where bankers work alongside students, and waiters rub shoulders with chief
executives … as the waves or words mix and match …

Some white crested wavesreminding me of the Cornish seas

So the nod to ‘Riders on the storm’ is just right
today … life has led me on a roller coaster – thankfully the sun is out, this
post is done … memories have abounded … the sun is not over the yard-arm – but I
shall enjoy a tipple with friends tonight!
I’ve caught my moment and need to get out into the fresh Spring air …

A photo I took of an art work on display in a localmemorabilia exhibition - it is dated July 1968

Have peaceful, thoughtful Memorial Day weekends, or
for us our Spring Bank Holiday weekend … the weather looks mixed – such is the
British weather world … at least it won’t be Stormy … but we can Celebrate and
Change the World with hope and love …

… my head is buzzing with storylines …’Catch the Story’
should be my motto for today!

Thursday, 16 May 2019

… anything but Sue – is what sprang to mind
immediately before the new Royal was named - I was then hooked into the Johnny
Cash renditions of the famous song …

Johnny Cash with June Carter

… while researching the last two posts … ‘Socrates’
popped off the page at me … Socrates Mbamuluis the journalist, who wrote the trending article on ‘Kugali: Africa’s largest networking comics platform’ …

Which led me to think of names – and how the
colonising powers made sure people had names they could pronounce … many
recorded on the spur of the moment at the registration offices.

I'm just glad that these sorts of letters
weren't mixed up into his name

Hence the preponderance of biblical, saints, classical,
historical or place names that people might have been lumbered with … mind you
some will stand out – eg Socrates, Nelson …

Prince Harry was the founder of the Invictus Games
for wounded and injured Service personnel; two days
after Archie was born, the Prince popped over to
the Netherlands - to promote the 2020 venue ...
where he was given this baby gro

So young Archie … all of 10 days old … bemused the
nation as many of us were caught totally off guard … seems an appropriate name
for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s new born … Archie apparently being of
German origin meaning ‘genuine’, ‘bold’ and ‘brave’ …

Harrison - Harry’s son - first recorded back in the
1300s … now denotes a first name of fairly recent origin – both names, I’m
certain, will become more popular in the years ahead …

Language is wonderful … as are names – and I encourage
us all to learn their sources … we can deduce a fair amount from each name’s
history … be it a person, a place or its origin …

Well the young Master Sussex … Harry’s son with an
Anglo-Saxon heritage from the Germanic tribes who had migrated from continental
Europe to our southern (Sussex) shores …

… mixing with the indigenous British groups … laying
the cultural foundations (from about 450 AD to 1066 AD), which are still in use
today … our modern English legal and administrative systems, and many aspects
of English Society …

… now adding in an American heritage to his roots – while being
a citizen of both the UK and the US.

Black-Eyed Susan

May we all live in tolerant communities, understanding
and embracing each other’s roots … as the Sussex’s add to the concoction of the
peoples in this wonderful world of ours …

Tuesday, 7 May 2019

My previous post on Afrofuturism introduced via Kugali,
the African Comic Book, made me want to bring you a little more of this
new African culture and how Kugali, which has only been going 3 years, came
about …

Stretch yourself the Kugali way

The name Kugali is an alteration of the Kiswahili
(Swahili) word ‘kujali’ … meaning to
notice.There’s more about their project at ‘This is
Africa.Me’ site … and very interestingly about two new countries due to
blunders from a well-known British airline, and the President of the free world
… see featured article on the site.

Some of the main African languages

This link reminds you that Africa is not a country …
and some other interesting facts … do you speak African? – well, neither do the
over 1 billion people on the continent;

... also reminding us Africa is home to 54
different nations (excluding the two mentioned on the ThisisAfrica.me site!), with more than 2,000
languages between them … and which have four of the world’s fastest growing
economies …

I seem to remember the founders of Kugali being
influenced by Justin Alba of ComicsVerse fame … he interested me as someone who
had overcome adversity as a child … being bullied, not fitting in, etc … but
who realised his strengths …

… so ComicsVerse uses comics to address social issues
including minority representation in popular culture and politics.Alba notes ‘that comics helped save his life, by teaching him how to cope with
severe bullying and develop self-confidence’.

Alba’s bio is worthwhile noting to refer to as a self-help
pep talk … we’re all in relatively privileged positions and I’m sure can pass
on our positive thoughts to others struggling today …

African colours - a bright nation
of wonderful entrepreneurs

To me this is a worthwhile selection of content to
look at, read, inwardly digest, watch and then think about … while remembering
Kugali’s name as a front-runner in allowing the creativity in Africa to shine.

They seem to be opening their doors in Britain … perhaps
because we are a very diverse and mixed country … with most of our schools
catering to many peoples – and kids love to learn.

Kugali showcasing African stories

I’m not sure I’ve tied together all the elements in
the post … but hope you get the gist … of introducing Kugali, Justin Alba of ComicsVerse
with his skills of leadership, how new content is being created in Africa … and
how we will all be the richer for our learning.Enjoy!

ComicsVerse CEO - Justin Alba Interview ... well worth reading ... and an extra ... as Sue Bursztynski mentioned about a Sudanese aide, who was able to help a 'Dinka' speaking child from the Arabian influence occurring in the Sudan ... BBC 'The art fuelling Sudan's revolution' ... wonderful story telling by the civilians on the walls around Khartoum ... waiting for democratic rule.

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About Me

A lover of life – who after London, spent time in South Africa; an administrator, sports lover, who enjoys cooking and entertaining ... who through her mother’s illness found a new passion – writing, in particular blogging; which provides an opportunity for future exploration, by the daughter, who has (in her 3rd age years) found a love of historical education. Curiosity didn’t kill this cat – interaction is the key! Now moved to Vancouver Island, Canada for 'a while' - not forever ...